The Joystick/Controller discussion thread

[CMDR Ellegon]

With Saitek products, you basically pay for a rental period equal to the warranty in your country. For me, that is two years. My first X-52 Pro lasted four months. The second set is now in use for about three months and I would be shocked if it lasted the rest of the two year period. So I will return them as they fail and get new sets.

Once the first X-52 Pro fails outside the warranty period, I will re-evaluate my options. For now, Saitek wins for functionality (for me) but gets a solid F on durability.

 

[Dubber]

Here's a quick tip that I did last night. X52 pro joystick seemed to 'stick' at times, not massively but fairly annoying.

Took the four screws out, one is under one of the pads, you can feel the hole where the screw is. Just carefully lift it and it will go back on no problem when you put it back together. Give the moving parts inside a blast with WD40. It makes a hell of a difference, now it's really smooth.

 

[Cowboy Bats]

Neither. My X55 is going on a year problem free now, but both friends who bought the same product because of my endorsement have had their units fail in under 6 months. This actually leaves me feeling worse than if mine had been bad.

 

[PhoenicianSon]

I got the x52Pro for my birthday from my wife. I was in love with it the minute I set it up, and ED already has a profile that automatically populates once the drivers are installed, and the profile is intuitive and simply requires some personal tweaking to your play style. However, I have since bought two more of them, as a month later the joystick throttle locking mechanism at 0 and full throttle broke in the chasis requiring a replacement. After receiving a completely new setup from MadCatz (Saitek corporate) a month thereafter the trigger on the new set up started sticking and I just sent it out again for warranty.

The joystick is phenomenal. It feels good, it works really well, and the immersion it offers is simply nothing like what you could get out of a keyboard and mouse alone or a standalone non-HOTAS joystick. However, they tend to break, especially after repeated use as in daily use. Nevertheless, MadCatz is absolutely top notch with their warranty service. So, once I filed the tickets in both scenarios, within the next business day I receive a response to send for warranty and the warranty is generally resolved within days after it is received by MadCatz.

Thus, I bought three of them. One for me, one for my son to play along with me, and an extra if either of the two break so neither of us is out of a joystick to play while one of the three broken is out for warranty service.

 

[Faybs]

Yeah, Saitek's build quality is all over the place. I have an X55 that requires a special powered hub else it phantom presses all the time, but otherwise seems OK except for the hats that became squishy quite quickly. Other people have it far worse than me, and yet others seem to be perfectly happy with theirs. The sad thing is, the stick and throttle are really well designed - it's the build quality that leaves a lot to be desired. My brother has the expensive Thrustmaster HOTAS, and that is built like a tank but doesn't feel as "nice" as the X55.

 

[Cajunwulffe]

My Saitek X-55 Rhino experience

I have had my X-55 ordered from Amazon, here in the U.S. since Premium Beta. I have suffered zero issues thus far. I've used the Logitech Extreme 3D Pro and the Thrustmaster T1600M. I built my computer over 6 years ago, but upgraded to 16 Gigs of memory and added a middle of the road Sapphire AMD Radeon R9 200 series Video Card. During this time I've upgraded from Windows 7, 8 Pro and finally to Windows 10. There were and still have had no issues with drivers for the X-55. I run my setup through a powered Sony PlayStation USB Hub, as many people were having issues, until going to a powered USB Hub. I would highly recommend using a powered Hub using any HOTAS setup. That's my experience so far. I love my X-55 Rhino. I would think about replacing it, if CH made something comparable with Yaw twist on the stick. As it stands now, I never have a need to touch the keyboard at all. Godspeed and Fly Safe Commanders.

 

[M. Grey]

1. MFD failure, screen starts flashing/flickering
2. At times buttons just stop to work, for my x52 pro, the throttle pov hat lateral left button stopped working, then a couple of hours later it works again.
3. Mouse stick extremely impresice and a pain to use, sometimes throws your cursor or makes you look to the left all of a sudden if you bind it that way.
4. MFD text disapears, the mode number goes away, text lools garballed.
5. Some times the throttle randomly loses its zero position, i have my throttle set to full range with a backwards gear shift button, so press the button then throttle forwards to go backwards or just go forwards. When this happens, you might not realise so when you get interdicted you won't be able to understand why you can't submit to the interdiction or sometimes you crash into stars because you can't slow down.

1. Only had this issue when using Teamspeak. Solution
2. Didn't happen yet.
3. Can confirm this. It's rather rare and when the cursor starts moving I can stop it by "operating" the mouse thingy in the same direction it moves.
4. Can confirm this.
5. Didn't happen yet.

Basically it's the X52 Pro is great HOTAS, quite satisfied with it as I can live with the bugs. More functionality for the MFD in E: D would be nice. But next time I'd go with CH Products for sure.

 

[bitstorm]

Anecdotal.

I bought an X52Pro a month or so back, the throttle started failing within 3 weeks.

Saitek (Madcatz) support were fine about it though, just wish they'd hurry up and get the replacement sent out.

 

[-=Rapidfire=-]

Good morning,

long time x52 user here. Started in the nineties with the x36 and got the x52 upgrade from my grilfriend in 2008. I like the HOTAS, but after a while the rubber like coating is getting sticky.
My conclusion after some research on the internet and speaking with other players is that this is a form of not reversible chemical transformation of the coating.
The x36 suffered from the same issue.
It starts slowly and gets nasty at some point. From my x36 and an old JVC Boomblaster I've learned that it gets worse if you try to clean it up or rub away.

I realy like the joystick, but be warned that the rubber-like parts tends to get sticky after a few years.
Personally i save some credits for a CH setup.

 

[dayrth]

I've not used a x55, but I've had my x52 pro for 9 months now and I love it. There are lots of posts complaining about the reliability, but I've never had a problem.

 

[Stressfest]

Anything CH is good and built to last. I think it's an investment that you'll get years of enjoyment out of.. I run a yoke and rudder pedal setup from my flight sim days when I do the Lakon hauling thing, adds a feel of weight to the ship. For combat, and once I get back into it myself (a little burnt out after getting my elite combat rating).. I think I'll get the F-16 flight stick and throttle.

 

[RipperJack]

lots have input on the problems with the saitek stuff.

I used to reference the old quote, "if it works, you tell 10 people, if it doesent, you tell 1000" kinda thing but my personal experiances with the saistek stuff was bloody awful.

X-52 squeeking, clunk with the afterburner detent, it just feels like one of those things where in a year and a half its in the bin and you should of just got a thrustmaster hotas X at 1/3 the price. I returned this to pcworld in the uk and went for a pro...this went back to pcworld literally 3 days later.

Thanks to amazon prime and their returns policy i ended up with THREE X-55's in my house at the same time, all with different faults for various reasons and was able to mix the flightstick from the first one with the throttle of the third one. It would of been ok if after a few weeks lubricant for the twist function didnt leak out of the handle and amazon basically turn't around and said "pfffft, nah, nomore replacements, you have an entire year to send it back for a full refund, heres a rental free of an x-55 until you do" basically.

I really did like the stick at the time...further down the line there was some major ergonomics i got to admit, people were right but at the time of buying an X55 i looked at them like they were being overly critical (heres an example) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hY0mTd0SOLg

So i had the luxery of shopping around, while the stick i was using wasnt perfect, it did the job ok, no more rush to find something to fill the gap for a hotas while i played elite.

On the decision to buy a CH fighter stick...i would strongly consider the thrustmaster warthog flightstick (not the hotas, just the stick part you can buy seperatly). I borrowed a ch fighterstick and throttle, iirc the thing is made from glass filled nylon so its STRONG, for a plastic product you see why CH build these things for industrial use. But for gaming, it feels...well just kind of boring plus while ch show them at their best, hall sensors will eventually wear etc, blah blah all that stuff.

So a tax rebate gave me the luxery of a full warthog hotas...the fighter stick weights asmuch as some peoples pc units, it has epic weight and feels just really professional, cant fault it, kind of thing you unscrew the handle from the base so people can hold it (and you can take the entire thing apart under warrenty meaning you can mount it to things). The throttle on the otherhand...meh, its really not designed for elite imo, it can work fine, dont get me wrong but too much plastic for an all metal brag, too specific to flight sims. In hindsight i could of saved a couple of hundred as i now play elite with a razer orbweaver on the throttle side. I think i will get a ch throttle further down the line, im just not playing enough elite to justify it until horizons atm.

TLR - The most ideal ultimate setup from my experiance and personal opinion would be a thrustmaster warthog flightstick (for the same price as a ch fighter stick) and the ch throttle.

 

[Zephyriel]

I've always fantasized about getting an X52 Pro, but reading this thread I think it's best that I stick to my trusty Hotas X. I only see positive reviews about CH products, but to be honest I cannot get past their very dated designs (and I want a twist axis on the stick because I use my pedals for lateral thrusters in ED).

 

[Harrius]

I have both, after I accidentally won an ebay auction for an X55.

You need a powered USB hub for both of them, first of all, so include it in the order for whichever one you go for.

It's a frustrating subject, because a combination of both would be perfect. The throttle on the X55 is better, but the stick on the X52pro is better, although also certain aspects of the X55 stick are better too.

All said and done, I'd say the X55 is *slightly* better because of *slightly* better build quality, more buttons and sexy smooth action throttle.

Seriously though, this market is wide open. If a company actually made a HOTAS system with LOTS of well placed buttons hats and axis, great build quality AND twist to yaw, saitek would never sell another unit.

 

[Kvas]

Consider this: there is just one company which have a throttle with analog joy, crucial IMHO for thruster manipulation and its CH products, and it's sold separately. Their flight stick doesn't have twist axis. I ended up getting 2 thrustmasters t16000m (ambidextrous) and set it up with an old steering wheel for pedals (main thrusters), It feels right and I got analog control of all axis, I can change thrust quickly in fight, for supercruise I can use left stick twist action to operate engines so don't have to step on throttle all the time. Works beautifully for me and it was a fraction of a cost of any other setup. Thrustmasters feel nice, not huge dead zones, a little bit stiff but for the price a good alternative.

 

[damdamrules]

lots have input on the problems with the saitek stuff.

I used to reference the old quote, "if it works, you tell 10 people, if it doesent, you tell 1000" kinda thing but my personal experiances with the saistek stuff was bloody awful.

X-52 squeeking, clunk with the afterburner detent, it just feels like one of those things where in a year and a half its in the bin and you should of just got a thrustmaster hotas X at 1/3 the price. I returned this to pcworld in the uk and went for a pro...this went back to pcworld literally 3 days later.

Thanks to amazon prime and their returns policy i ended up with THREE X-55's in my house at the same time, all with different faults for various reasons and was able to mix the flightstick from the first one with the throttle of the third one. It would of been ok if after a few weeks lubricant for the twist function didnt leak out of the handle and amazon basically turn't around and said "pfffft, nah, nomore replacements, you have an entire year to send it back for a full refund, heres a rental free of an x-55 until you do" basically.

I really did like the stick at the time...further down the line there was some major ergonomics i got to admit, people were right but at the time of buying an X55 i looked at them like they were being overly critical (heres an example) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hY0mTd0SOLg

So i had the luxery of shopping around, while the stick i was using wasnt perfect, it did the job ok, no more rush to find something to fill the gap for a hotas while i played elite.

On the decision to buy a CH fighter stick...i would strongly consider the thrustmaster warthog flightstick (not the hotas, just the stick part you can buy seperatly). I borrowed a ch fighterstick and throttle, iirc the thing is made from glass filled nylon so its STRONG, for a plastic product you see why CH build these things for industrial use. But for gaming, it feels...well just kind of boring plus while ch show them at their best, hall sensors will eventually wear etc, blah blah all that stuff.

So a tax rebate gave me the luxery of a full warthog hotas...the fighter stick weights asmuch as some peoples pc units, it has epic weight and feels just really professional, cant fault it, kind of thing you unscrew the handle from the base so people can hold it (and you can take the entire thing apart under warrenty meaning you can mount it to things). The throttle on the otherhand...meh, its really not designed for elite imo, it can work fine, dont get me wrong but too much plastic for an all metal brag, too specific to flight sims. In hindsight i could of saved a couple of hundred as i now play elite with a razer orbweaver on the throttle side. I think i will get a ch throttle further down the line, im just not playing enough elite to justify it until horizons atm.

TLR - The most ideal ultimate setup from my experiance and personal opinion would be a thrustmaster warthog flightstick (for the same price as a ch fighter stick) and the ch throttle.

I checked out the thrustmaster warthog flightstick and i think its a bit to overpriced to me x_x not only that, but my currency is currently dying right now so yea it just continues to add more dirt to the grave but thanks for the suggestion though

- - - Updated - - -

The thrustmaster t16000m flightstick definitely looks interesting and its also pretty cheap compared to the other sticks. Anyone has any opinions on it comparing it with the CH fighterstick?

 

[BurnyBurns]

I can only talk about the X52 Pro from my experience. I'd say it's a good stick, if you can get it for no more than 150$/€ (I payed a little more), but there are frustrating design niggles.

My Pros and Cons for the X52 Pro:

Pro

• Very accurate, stick movement feels smooth. Very well suited for playing Elite without rudder pedals.
• Didn't need any kind of calibration fo me.

Cons (these are all small niggles, but overall resulted in my replacing the X52 with the CH Products Fighterstick and Pro Throttle)

• Bumps in the throttle movement at 25% and 75%, which don't make sense in Elite (can be removed with a simple custom mod though!)
• Switches at the stick's base. There are three with different functions in either direction and they form a kind of bar, so blindly operating them could mean you hit the wrong one if you're not careful. Also, they're at the stick's base. You have to reach over your lap with one hand to operate them if you don't want to let go of the stick. Kind of like using a keyboard's num pad with the left hand. They're simply poorly placed and designed.
• Useless controls on the throttle. There's a kind of analogue pad, that controls the mouse pointer. I have a mouse for that though and an analogue stick would be a lot more helpful for 6dof movement. Then there are two scroll wheels and two buttons at the base which control functions of the display, making them useless for game functions (e.g: rudder trim in other flight games). That oversized display in itself is also not the most useful addition. It's basically a glorified clock...
• I needed to configure the HOTAS in the OS and in Saitek's config software, before some buttons would even register in Elite. Take the "I" button on the throttle. It was necessary to deselect a clutch function configuration in Windows' (8.1 in my case) controller setup, to get it to register. Same for a number of controls on the Throttle - I had to change them in Saitek's control software to have no preprogrammed function, before I could assign them in Elite. For some reason, the clutch configuration seemed to have reset itself for me a couple of times.
• Visual Design. Could be a "Pro" point for some, is a con for me, although the one I could've ignored the easiest. It tries to be nice with glowing buttons, some of them metal, some shiny elements, but it makes a tacky and overdesigned impression on me. The rubber coatings on the throttle and stick might also turn rather nasty when they start to wear off.

All those niggles have eventually led me to start replacing the X52 with a CH Products Fighterstick and Pro Throtle. The design of those is somewhere between functional and ugly, but I kind of prefer that to the X52 lighting up like a christmas tree. I've also heard terrific things about ther longevity, although they're not immune to quality control issues.

My first Pro throttle had a defect HAT button, which would only register in three out of four directions out of the box. On my replacement throttle, all buttons register. Well, most if the time. Sometimes they don't register on the mechanical click, but only if you push it a bit further after that.

 

[damdamrules]

Hmm... so far im leaning towards the side of the CH fighterstick and CH pro throttle.. probably gonna get it later

 

[streki]

X52 or X55???

I recently asked myself the same question. X55 users on this forum either loved it, or complained that it broke down.

I got the X52, and i'm very happy with it. I have done the throttle mod though.

The throttle was horrible out of the box, and this simple mod fixes it nicely.

Don't buy a stick unless it has twist for yaw unless you intend to also buy pedals.

 

[M. Grey]

Did the throttle mod too. Was easy to fix and feels much better. Had to set up a deadzone in the middle though to make "center" it easier.